Washing Away the Weak of the Week
by Star-Struck Paradise
Summary: That week had changed me more than any other in my life; in some ways that was great, but in others, well, let me just say that it took a while before I no longer had trouble going to sleep at night. (RJ, daughter)
1. Life as I Knew It, the End of the Week

Washing Away the Weak of a Week

Chapter One: Life as I Knew it, and the End of the Week  
  
A/N: I've written bits of fan fiction before, but this is my favorite. I've decided to branch out, into the future, and show a week's worth of time through the eyes of a daughter. I will try my best to update once a week, though I promise nothing. Please review, I could use any advice you offer, and I hope you enjoy "Washing Away the Weak of a Week."  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Gilmore Girls. I simply own the original characters I have created, and the idea for this story.  
  
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Looking out the window into the bleak, rainy night, I felt compelled. Compelled to step out into that night. So I did. With pajamas and bare feet, I quietly opened the front door-- careful not to wake my parents-- stepped into the cool, wet grass, and threw my head back. I could feel my hair resting on my lower back, and I could feel raindrops trying to enter my eyes. I closed my eyes to let my eyelashes capture those drops, letting the rain help me make sense of all that had happened during the past week, which seemed to stretch so much further back in time. That week had changed me more than any other in my life; in some ways that was great, but in others, well, let me just say that it took a while before I no longer had trouble going to sleep at night. But on that night, I simply let the rain wash away all the bad things that had happened, to concentrate on the good, and to move on in life.  
  
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My parents named me after two writers. They both read a lot, and so do I, so I guess it's appropriate. My name is Charlie Parker Mariano, daughter of Rory and Jess Mariano. There have been teases here and there throughout my life about having a boy's name. But I really don't care. It's a girl's name too, and I have always been proud to be named after Charles Dickens and Dorothy Parker. Anyway, now that I'm seventeen, the teasing has died down quite a bit. People got used to the name, and I guess they tired of harassing me.  
  
My parents' relationship has had its ups and its downs. But then I guess they finally got to where their heads, and their hearts, were in the right place at the right time. That's when my dad proposed and my mom said yes. But first, my mom had to realized this mistake that she made with some loser, a married ex-boyfriend she went to far with. She went after my dad, but it still took time for them to work it out. After they got married, my mom finished college at Yale, and they traveled the world for a couple of years. That's when my mom found out that she was pregnant, and they came back to Stars Hollow.  
  
In Stars Hollow this whole time, my grandmother, Lorelai, was dating the local diner guy, Luke. It just so happened that he proposed on the same day my mom found out she was pregnant.  
  
After the wedding, Lorelai moved in with Luke in his apartment above the diner, so that my parents could move into Lorelai's house, the house that my mom grew up in. That's how it became the house that I grew up in too.  
  
I have heard many stories of the past. Some of them I have heard too often, and they sicken me. Stories of my parents, and stories of Lorelai and Luke. Stories of waltzes, stories of the dance marathon, stories of visits at the bridge. But of all the stories, there is one that I can stand. I love the story. It's the story of how my mom called my dad Dodger after he borrowed her book. Now, you might think I'm crazy for liking this story when all the others annoy me. But if you consider all that I have told you, the reason should come quite clearly. That moment, that conversation, is one of the main reasons that my parents decided to name me Charlie. And I love my name.  
  
My mom and Lorelai are both coffee addicts. My dad swears that my mom snuck a little bit of coffee into my bottle every morning, and I can't help thinking that he may be right. Or it might just be those genes. Anyway, I drink just as much coffee as my mom, though probably not quite as much as Lorelai, since she lives and sleeps with the maker of the ultimate coffee.  
  
Everyone always says how much my mom is like Lorelai, and how much my dad is a mixture of his mom, his dad, his grandfather, and Luke. I have small similarities with some of them. There's my coffee-loving nature, my love of books, and my clear blue eyes. Then there's my curly dark hair. And my love of adventure. But in my desperation to get out of the small town that is Stars Hollow, I've really always been my own person too.  
  
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It was in Stars Hollow that the week began. I was with my boyfriend, Jake, in the gazebo, when he told me the plan.


	2. And So the Week Began

**Washing Away the Weak of the Week**

**Chapter Two: And so the week began...**

**A/N: **Thanks for the great reviews. Hope you like this chapter too! I am currently working on a one parter, but it shouldn't interfere with the writing of chapter three.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Gilmore Girls. I simply own the original characters I have created, and the idea for this story. And the lyrics belong to the Shins.

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It was in Stars Hollow that the week began. I was with my boyfriend, Jake, in the gazebo, when he told me the plan.

Jake was the one person who I knew shared my need to escape from the boundaries of Stars Hollow. But I was still shocked when he asked me to run away with him. I remember our conversation...

"We can run away, never look back. We won't leave any note or anything. Let them worry. They're the ones who have been stifflin' us to this point."

"But Jake, they'll call the police. They'll put us on the news. Lorelai and my mom will go crazy putting signs up on all the phone poles in the world--"

That's when he kissed me. That powerful, convincing kiss. That's when I made up my mind. I'd go. But I would make sure that my parents didn't worry. I'd let them know that I was safe. That I was simply tired of the confines.

I convinced him to let me go home. I said I wanted to grab some things before we left. He agreed. He said he needed to get gas. When I heard his car turn the corner, I stepped in the door. No one was home. Both my parents were still at work. I glanced at the clock. 4:30. They wouldn't be at work much longer. I would have to hurry.

I grabbed the piece of chalk that was sitting on the rarely used message board in the kitchen. To tell you the truth, I don't even know why we have that message board. I think someone gave it to my parents as a wedding present. But at that moment it seemed like fate that the board was blank, hanging on the wall, waiting for me to write, "Don't worry. Went with Jake. Have cell." So that's what I did. Then I grabbed a travel bag, a picture of my family, and my cell phone. I stuck the picture and phone in a semi-hidden pocket inside the bag. Then I shoved two spare sets of clothes into the bag before zipping it up. I was on my way out the door when I grabbed a CD for good measure. It was one of my mom's old CDs that I had discovered it early on--The Shins.

Out on the sidewalk, I slung the bag over my shoulder and ran a block. It felt so revitalizing. I was free. I walked the rest of the way to the gas station. I didn't pass Jake, so I figured he must still be in a long line for gas.

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When I arrived at the gas station, I saw Jake standing with the hood of his car up. I started running again, anxious to find out what was holding us up. To see what was jeopardizing our chance to get out.

"What's wrong with the car?" I asked as soon as reached him.

"Nothin'. Just checkin' the oil. It's fine. Let's go."

And with that, I climbed into the passenger seat of his car, and we were on our way.

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I found myself glancing at the clock much too frequently for the first hour or so of the drive. My fingers were constantly tapping on the side of the seat, while The Shins blared away. I suddenly remembered what my mom was always saying. She kept telling me that she didn't like the idea that I was dating Jake because he's "wild." I never understood why she was worried. Things worked out fine between her and my dad, and people had warned her about him at first.

I jumped when my phone rang, feeling it on my leg, through the bag, but Jake was luckily unable to hear it over the music.

Shit, I thought, wishing that I could answer it, to fill everyone in.

Attempting to calm down, I looked around the car. There was quite a bit of dust covering the dash. The windshield was slightly cracked and covered with bugs. A scratch had long ago been made across the hood and had become rusted. The steering wheel was worn, and the number on the speedometer was high, although I couldn't quite focus on the exact digits. Behind the steering wheel was Jake. He saw me looking at him out of the corner of his eye, I guess, and he looked back at me. When we both smiled, everything became okay, and I leaned back with my eyes closed.

Cut from bad cloth or spoiled like socks

Add it up and basically people never change.

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I fell asleep somewhere along the line. When I woke up, the car was quiet, still, and I was the only one in it. We were parked at a rest stop, so I assumed Jake was using the bathroom. I looked at my watch when I realized that the sun was setting. It was 7:30; three hours since I had left home. I remembered the phone call from earlier and got out my cell to check to see who it had been. I recognized my home number on the screen and went to the voice mail menu.

"Charlie, it's Mom. We were wondering what we're not supposed to be worrying about. Call us."

I couldn't risk having Jake return in the middle of a phone call, so I decided to go looking for him. I opened the car door and stepped out, finding my knees slightly weak from disuse. After a bit of stretching, I made my way to the building of the rest area, where I found Jake digging through town guides. He looked up at the sound of the rusting door hinges.

"Hey," he said. "I'm lookin' for a good hotel. I think we've gone far enough for now."

I nodded slightly, somewhat dazed by the news. It hadn't occurred to me that we'd be staying in a hotel. Jake grabbed a pen and circled something on one of the papers.

"Well, let's go."

There were things that I wanted to say, to ask, but my thoughts were jumbled and incomprehensive, so I simply followed Jake silently back to the car. The ride to the hotel was so mentally antagonizing that I couldn't believe it only took five minutes to get there.

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We pulled into a parking space next to a hotel I could have sworn was closed. Jake got out to pay for a room, and I used the opportunity to slip my cell phone into my pocket. I then proceeded to examine my new surroundings. There were only two other cars in the small parking lot that ran down the length of the building. The building had two floors, which appeared to have about fifteen doors each. The miniscule pool seemed to have a few inches of algae infested water and several dozen leaves in it. The place was pathetic, but I suppose that's because Jake was trying to stick to some kind of budget.

I saw Jake walking back towards me, so I grabbed hold of my bag and waited for him to get his from the trunk so we could head to our room.

I felt my cell phone on my thigh, and an intense need to call home came over me.

"Jake, can I have one of the keys? I think I'm gonna go for a walk."

"Uh, sure. Here," he said, sliding a key out of the envelope for himself and handing the other to me.

I walked quickly away from the dilapidated hotel. When I felt that I was far enough away, I took out my cell phone and called home.

"You know the drill. Now go." The sound of my dad's voice was comforting. BEEP.

"Mom, Dad. It's me. I'm with Jake. We're staying in a hotel a few hours from home. I'm fine. Love you."

I hung up and slid my phone back into my pocket. Even after all the sleep I got in the car, I was still feeling exhausted, so I turned back towards the hotel and took out my key.

"Room 113. Good thing I'm not superstitious," I muttered.

Jake was already asleep, so I climbed into bed next to him and drifted off to sleep.


End file.
